Post update: 11AUG17 Finished piece.
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Doing research at the Washington State Archives I found this wonderful photo of a restaurant that used to be on 5th in downtown Olympia. State Legislators met there. There was a separate “ladies” entrance, to ensure there were only proper outings and no mixing of the sexes.
Before I commit to cutting the paper, I rough sketch and sort out how big I will make the piece. On the table are my tools for working. Sometimes I journal about the picture and ask the people in it questions. They were very happy to be working there and got a long really well. They were always busy and the restaurant was very popular. of course, there is no way I can know if that is true or not; it’s what I got while I journal-ed.
The next step is choosing the building, trim, and window colors. I use a heavy colored paper from the craft store. I used to mount the finished piece on black paper and I’m trying to get away from that and use some sort of color instead. I think it brings my work alive and, what can I say? I love color! Once I choose my colors I sketch out the building, trim, windows and such with a pencil and then I check my angles and cut them out with scissors or x-acto.
I love cutting the windows and doors out! I then very carefully glue the trim pieces on. With this I use YES paste and a broken toothpick. TIP: if your YES paste is getting a little hard to manipulate, just sprinkle a little water over the top of it, close the lid, and let it incorporate for several hours to overnight. I then mix it in a little and find it reconstitutes my paste and makes it pliable again.
I can’t really write more about the glue-ing process. It takes patience and time. I put on my bifocals and move slowly. It is very meditative for me and I get really excited when I envision the final piece. The Joy I get from doing this is monumental. I hope my work brings you Joy and makes you smile.